Journal metrics

Journal metrics

ESSD indexed by Thomson Reuters as first data journal in Earth sciences

17 March 2015

The open-access journal Earth System Science Data (ESSD) has been indexed by Thomson Reuters in the Web of ScienceTM as one of the first of the emerging genre of data journals.

After assessing the quality, number, and characteristics of papers published in ESSD since its launch in 2008, Thomson Reuters has included the journal in their Science Citation Index Expanded.

Hans Pfeiffenberger, one of the ESSD chief editors, says: “The Thomson Reuters decision offers very positive feedback to those scientists who prepare and share their valuable data for re-use by fellow scientists.” “It also provides a strong signal in the ongoing debate on how to publish data sets and ensure professional recognition of the data providers’ efforts”, adds chief editor David Carlson. “We owe our thanks to the many researchers who have supported this effort, to our journal’s editors and reviewers, and to our publisher Copernicus.”

ESSD was one of the very first data journals worldwide when it was launched by Copernicus Publications in 2008. Its goals are to make data sets a reliable, fully citable resource on which to build further research and to reward all individuals contributing to data collection and analysis by establishing priority and recognition through the impact of their articles.

In addition to standard peer-review criteria, ESSD editors and reviewers focus on data quality and significance of data sets, their uniqueness, usefulness, and completeness. Copernicus’ Interactive Public Peer ReviewTM – which is used for ESSD – offers public access to reviewer reports and the opportunity for the community to comment on the manuscript prior to publication.

“That ESSD was accepted in the Web of Science is terrific news for us all. This decision displays the great work that the editors have put into the journal”, says Martin Rasmussen, Managing Director of Copernicus Publications. “More importantly, it reflects the trust of the scientific community to submit their top research data to ESSD and it proves that publishing research data has become valuable for scientists and engineers.”

Besides being indexed and abstracted in Thomson Reuters’ Science Citation Index Expanded, ESSD is now also included in the Journal Citation Reports/Science Edition and the Current Contents/Physical Chemical and Earth Sciences. Indexing will start with ESSD volume 4, 2012. Editors and contributors will now be able to inspect an individual article’s citation history and thereby track usage and impact of the published data also in the Web of ScienceTM.